Insert Comments: MS Word

Whether or not your document has been protected, you may want to comment on a document without adding to the text itself.

Like sticky notes attached to a page, your comments stay apart from the main flow of the document. You place them in a separate pane, like footnotes. If you have the proper equipment, you can record an audio comment rather than typing text.

If you type comments directly in the document, you may forget to remove them before the final print. Also, you cannot tell who made the comment. MS Word's comment feature records not only the comment but also the person who made it.

Use these steps to insert a comment in your document.

1. Choose Insert | Comment or click the Insert Comment button on the Reviewing toolbar. This opens the Comment pane.
    
2. Type the text for the comment, or if your computer has a microphone, record a comment as a sound file.
    
3. Click Close to remove the comment pane.

The word adjacent to the insertion point is highlighted, and a comment mark appears with your initials, numbered in order, and surrounded by brackets.

When a document is returned to you with comments, you can view them easily.

Scroll through the document to look for highlighting as well as marks that signal a comment, or use the Next Comment button on the Reviewing toolbar to jump to it.

Place the mouse pointer over the comment mark and pause. The comment appears, with the person's name, in a yellow ScreenTip.

• To open the Comment pane, choose View | Comments or click the Edit | Comment button on the Reviewing toolbar. Now you can edit or add to the comments.
   
• To delete a comment, highlight the comment mark and press Delete, or click the Delete Comment button on the Reviewing toolbar.

To delete all the comments at one time, use the Replace Command. In the Find What box, click Special and choose Comment Mark. Leaving the Replace With box empty, click Replace All.

You can leave the comment pane open, and as you scroll through a document, the corresponding comments will appear in it for you to view.

(c) Carol Bratt, all rights reserved. Used with permission. Duplication is forbidden without express consent of author. Visit Carol's web site to learn more tips like this one!